Massive rain storms in the Nevada desert have led to the postponement of the opening of the Burning Man festival.

The downpours were so heavy on Monday that roads from Reno to the site 110 miles (180km) away in the Black Rock Desert were impassable.

Organisers closed the event with roads due to reopen at 6am (local time) on Tuesday but ticketholders were advised not to arrive until at least midday.

"Organisers of the annual Burning Man event are asking any participants travelling to the event now to postpone their arrival until at least Tuesday morning," Black Rock City LLC said on its Facebook page.

"Black Rock City has shut down following rainstorms that left standing water on the playa, leaving it undrivable," it added, referring to the desert festival site.

The cultural festival originated as a tiny event in San Francisco in 1986 but now draws 50,000 people or more each year, including many from Silicon Valley.

Participants create a city in the middle of the desert that is "a temporary metropolis dedicated to community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance", and end their week-long gathering by burning a giant wooden statue of a man.

Would-be attendees took the delay this year in their stride.

"It is what it is. Guess we're starting the party in line," Alex Elliott wrote on the festival's Facebook page.